It’s about to be out in the world. I can’t wait to see what you make! 🪡📚🌷
Preorder Piece by Piece in all good bookshops or from the link in my bio.
Published by @hardiegrantbooks
It’s here! In real life! Here’s a first look at my craft book, Piece by Piece. I’ve been working on it for nearly two years, and it is SO exciting that is finally here in my hands. It’s more perfect than I ever thought it could be. 🥹
Comment ‘🪡’ or click the link in my bio to preorder.
In your favourite bookshops in the US, UK, and Australia May 8! Published by @hardiegrantbooks
Happy belated 250th birthday to Jane Austen! And a big thank you to the team @janeaustenshouse for hosting me last weekend for a talk and a workshop to celebrate.
The house is in the picturesque village of Chawton, where it is surrounded by other chocolate-box cottages, a tea shop, and a very cosy pub.
In the morning, we talked quilt history and explored Austen’s patchwork coverlet as well as contemporary makers. In the afternoon, I taught the basics of English Paper Piecing (the technique used in Austen’s coverlet) and we hand stitched together some crisp hexagons and perfectly-pointed diamonds.
Once again, I forgot to take photos during the workshop itself, so it (alongside the 10 mince pies I ate) are erased from history. Instead you just get some atmospheric shots of Jane Austen’s kitchen. 🤷🏻♀️
@newcrafthouse making up some velvet patchwork stockings earlier this month. I always forget to take photos in the workshops themselves, so you just get this slightly mysterious set of ‘before’ photos with no ‘afters’… 🫣
I’ll be back again on January 4th for a patchwork/quilt making session, in case you fancy joining?
JULY.
so far:
- I’ve written some things (lists, ideas, etc) in the garden
- we finally built a shed. We’ve been talking about building a shed for three years, so this feels big.
- I made some curtains for the shed
- passionflowers
- after two years of no plums from our plum tree, it is now raining plums. If you know what to do with 1000 plums, let me know.
- our tiny, one vine, vineyard 🍇🍷
- chillies
I’ll be at the @of_making ’s big, free Festival of Stuff tomorrow, showing you how to make patchwork parachutes and talking you through how ripstop fabric is woven and why it is (mostly) unrippable.
Come say hi!
This is from our very scientific parachute testing a few weeks ago. 🪂🪂🪂
That is a wrap folks! I finished off the Piece by Piece Book tour @fabricgodmother on Saturday with four mini-workshops and some fabric browsing in between. The last few months have been such a wild ride and I’m so grateful to everyone who has hosted/sponsored/turned up at the events.
Thanks especially to @fabricgodmother for letting me crash their open day and meet so many of their lovely, creative customers. It was such a fun event, and the perfect high to finish on. 😘😊
Big thanks to the crew behind the book as well @quadrillecreate@hardiegrantbooks
Piece by Piece: 20 modern patchwork and quilting projects is OUT NOW and you can order it at all good book shops or through the link in my bio.
Thank you very much to @toppingsbath for hosting me last night and for everyone who came and chatted and stitched.
I’m very grateful to all of you, but especially to my youngest and most precocious (as far as I know) reader yet, Enid, and her parents @ellen_rose90 and @georgehprice for getting lil’ Enid started early. Swipe to the end for cute baby reading time.
Last week I got back in the natural-dye saddle, taking @company_place , @yinkadanmole@gonzalofuentes3 and friends around Thamesmead in South East London on a forage for colour. We found so many amazing plants including my favourite, weld (a historically important source of yellow).
For the past two years or so I’ve been focussed more on design, upcycling and writing Piece by Piece and my dye practice has taken a back seat (a second transport metaphor in less than two paragraphs. I’m sorry.)
I’d almost forgotten how magical making dyes can be. Going colour foraging is especially beautiful because it makes you concentrate on the landscape around you and look for potential in new ways. It’s just the best.
Remember, always forage responsibly (don’t dig up any one’s garden beds or put anything weird in your mouth). 🥳
